Cross the Shining Sea
by Michie-ko
Summary: When does the nightmare of losing you again become a reality?


It's been a while since I wrote a Tokyo Mew Mew fic, or a story in general for that matter. So, here we go. The title is the translation of an Ichigo single, Kirameki no Umi wo Koete.

Please read and review. It might be a while before I write another Mew Mew story, seeing as how I've got a few Sailormoon fics to finish first. Lots of feedback may get more short fics written, though chaptered ones won't come for a while.

Rated like it is due to glowing sea creatures, angst, and a pseudo-drowning Ichigo.

_Story by the one and only Michie. Tokyo Mew Mew, the characters, and the plot aren't mine. The story is. I just play around with the characters, kill them off, and have fun doing it. Joy._

**Cross the Shining Sea**

The sound of waves, crashing against the side of the ship, and the calls of the gulls surrounded the small, wood-paneled cabin. Inside, the two people stirred in their sleep, but only one awoke. Breathing heavily, she gently walked across the cabin to the other bed, dragging the pristine white bedspread wrapped around her feet across the floor. She sighed, heaving the fluffy comforter back onto the small bed, and falling back onto cot in the process. Finally, the girl managed to get completely out of bed. Bending over the other cot, she gently kissed the sleeping form on the cheek, and went outside to the nearby deck.

Her red hair blowing in the chilly morning breeze, she shivered. Stupid me! she thought. How silly of her to come out here with only her light pajamas on. Pulling the pink tank top she wore tighter around her slender frame, she sunk to the ground, bringing her legs clad in red and white-checkered light pajamas up to her chin. Taking a deep breath, she stared out at the sea that surrounded her on all sided. Off in the distance, she saw a hint of a misty shore. Or was it only a mirage? Everything about this trip was like a dream, a wisp of a foggy memory. But it was wonderful. Every moment of it.

Hearing the door open behind her, she spun around as best she could in her position. He walked out, a blanket under his arm and a tired smile on his face. The girl gazed lovingly back at him. Pulling out the blanket, he lovingly placed it around her shoulders and settled down on the deck next to her.

"Ichigo?"

"Masaya? What's wrong?"

"This place…what feeling does it give you?"

"A sense of, well, mystery. Perhaps of adventure. And of course, love!" She glanced for a second at her beloved Aoyama, moving closer to his warm body.

"Then it must just be me then," he murmured under his breath. He looked concerned, so she decided to probe into the matter more. Not that she was a nosy person or anything, Ichigo thought, but this trip was along the lines of a honeymoon, and she wanted to make it as enjoyable as possible for the both of them.

"Well then, what do you feel about this place that makes it so different from mine?"

Masaya smiled at her, but his eyes were still troubled. "Nothing much. Just a sense of well…foreboding. And danger. But it could just be the simple fact that it's cold out today. It's probably nothing."

"But you look so worried! Is there anything I can do for you?"

"It's probably just the fact that I've never been on a cruise like this before. Just anxiety; I'll be over it soon, I'm sure."

It was true; he had never been on such a nice trip before. On such a huge ship, with a swimming pool, gym, tennis courts, and of course, the huge observation deck only a flight of stairs away. And the gorgeous scenery as well. Sailing around the coast of Europe with Ichigo…shouldn't he be happy? But there was still that sense of something waiting to happen that held him back. It wasn't a guess; something important would happen soon. Whether it was good or bad, he could not tell.

"What time is it?"

"Ah…early, I'm not quite sure." He glanced at his wrist. Noting the absence of his watch, he gave a slight smile. "The sun's hardly even up yet. Why don't we go back to bed for a bit?"

"Sure, ah, all right. What time's breakfast?"

Shaking his head, Masaya simply hugged Ichigo tighter.

o.o.o

Waking up to the howl of wind and rain, she sat up with a start. The whole room was tossing and turning, and there was no light. Was this a bad dream? Ichigo wanted nothing more than to scream, but Masaya was there; it would be all right. Glancing to her side, she looked at the other bed. The covers were thrown aside hurriedly; there was no sign of her love. A blast of wet wind made her shudder. Open, the door fluttered like a sheet of paper.

Wrapping the damp blanket around her, she wandered out onto the deck, shivering. Calling his name over and over, she looked out over the stretch of wood and water. A slight glowing form down to her right caught her eye, and she staggered to it. There, with an eerie yellow aura surrounding him, was the person she cared most about, her Masaya.

Staring into the ocean, his luminous tendrils of hair fighting the wind, he seemed to be unresponsive when she yelled out his name. But yet…it was as if he ignored her. What was this? What was happening? She ran up to him, fighting the storm. Clinging to his arm, shouting his name, she wondered what was going on. He turned his head, just slightly, enough so that their eyes could meet. Ichigo stared at him, his eyes seemingly in a deep sleep, unresponsive, and a deep fear filled her.

"Masaya! What's wrong! Hurry up, we have to get away from this storm!"

But her screams did no good. With a heavy hand, Masaya pushed her off of him and turned back to the water. An eerie glow, similar to his new aura, was cast off by the waves, and Ichigo found herself transfixed by the newborn light. Before her eyes, a single tentacle burst from the water in front of Masaya, encircled his waist, and dragged him into the murky depths.

The light faded.

In shock, she slumped down, staring at a few pitiful bubbles rising from the deep. What had just happened? Then, snapping into the frame of mind she had used for too long, she began analyzing, thinking about the options. But she knew she had to save him.

Leaping off of the deck rail, she dove towards the gray water below her.

"Mew Mew Strawberry! Metamorphosis!"

Hitting the sea with a splash, Ichigo felt that something wasn't right. Glancing down at her kicking, swimming body, she yelped in shock. Where there should have been a pink outfit was only her own soggy pajamas. No Mew outfit.

Examining her own body while at the same time treading water, Ichigo grew more fearful. Her hands, bare, no gloves, as with her feet. No tail, no ears. Her hair was her regular red, as opposed to the bright pink that she should have had. After a long, heart aching moment, she finally decided on one thing.

"The transformation…didn't work?"

She shouted the incantation again, to the same effect. Nothing was different, except she was cold, and wet, and getting tired. And, there was also the fact that the cruise liner was sailing onward without her or her love.

"Help! Please! Someone! He's…down in the water! Help us…please…"

Tears mingled with choppy waters. She finally realized how much time had passed, and how much air there was in the water. There wasn't much she could do, but she wasn't about to give up without using all of her efforts.

With a deep breath, she dove down into the water, her feet kicking a trail of bubbles behind her. As her body went under, she shuddered involuntarily with the sudden onslaught of cold. Blinking open her blurry eyes, she gazed down, to the waterlogged world below. Ichigo strained, wandered. Searched for a glow.

Coming back up for air, she gasped at the surface. By now, the ship was outside of her shouting distance, in this storm at least. Her only hope was that she would be seen…but no, that wouldn't happen, would it? Putting the thoughts out of her mind, Ichigo focused on saving her dearest.

She went under again, in a different spot. Or was it the same place the waves had carried her back to? The open water all looked the same. Gone was the hint of shoreline Ichigo had noticed before. She didn't even know what direction it was in.

At the edge of her breath, near what felt was the breaking point of her lungs, Ichigo saw a slight flash in the corner of her eye. Floating to the surface, she inhaled quickly and went back down to investigate further. She kicked down a few strokes, toward the soft green-yellow glow beneath her. Reaching out for it, straining her body, fingertips extending to their farthest point, she kicked deeper. Water, closing in above her body, threatened to cover her up and never let her go.

And there he was.

Just a silhouette, that was all he was, but it was her Masaya. His hair floated like a million tiny plants growing in the ocean, and his limbs were outstretched, seemingly reaching out to her. There was no sign of the mysterious sea creature, nor was there a sign of life in the human below her, with the possible exception of his slight glow.

Without thinking, only reacting, she swam towards him. She wanted nothing more than to scream his name, to hold him again, to save him, but first she had to reach him. Kicking until her thighs ached, pulling at the marine prison until her arms burned, diving until her lungs were at breaking point. But she couldn't stop. She was so close!

The surface seemed so far away. All around her was seawater.

So much pain, but it was distant, as if the body wasn't hers. Pushing herself, muscles screaming, blood pounding, but it was nothing alongside her beating heart.

And against all her will, she blew the soft bubbles of air out of her empty, begging lungs, sucking in what her body hoped was sweet oxygen. In harsh reality, it was a piece of the ocean.

Her eyes grew wide, her body thrashed about. Movements beyond her own control, wait, she had no control. Everything began to fade, as the sharp sting of the water inside of her shut her body down. Never taking her eyes off of her love, the glow below her, the water around her, grew fuzzy, and dim.

And she was drifting away, as if on a cloud. The pain was gone, there was no feeling. Only peace. An odd peace, yes, but still…

She could hear his voice. How beautiful…

o.o.o

"Ichigo! Ichigo! Wake up!"

Blinking open her eyes, the girl awoke to a rough shaking, and strong hands on her shoulders. Gasping for air, sweet air, and reminiscing about the nightmare she had just suffered, she flopped back onto the bed, exhausted. Tears welled up in her eyes.

Glancing up at the person that had woken her, Ichigo was overjoyed to see Masaya standing above her. Eyes laced with concern, he had tried to wake her up.

"You were shaking and crying…I didn't know what was going on. Did you have a nightmare?" he asked, worried.

"I though it was real…the glowing, and the water. So much water."

"It's all right. It was a dream. A bad one, but it's not real." He put a comforting arm around Ichigo.

"But…the storm. It was so wet, and the water was everywhere!"

Masaya bent down and gave Ichigo a quick kiss. "You really did have a vivid dream. It's been nice weather for a while. Of course, the morning was a bit chilly, but it's really warmed up."

She didn't feel like explaining to him the part about not transforming, and hoped it was of no concern. Having grown used to her secret power, it was a shock when they weren't there with her.

Ichigo simply stood up. Putting a small hand on her love's shoulder to steady herself, she teetered her way outside onto the deck. It was warm, and there was a light, soft wind. Brightly shone the sun, and distant sounds of birds could be heard. Distantly, she saw an emerald shore. The sea was shining.

Beautiful…

End 


End file.
